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Thursday, 9 January 2014

Bunk Bed Tidy Tutorial

Bunk beds and high sleepers are great for children but there is always the problem of what to do with drinks, books and toys for the person in the top bunk. We were lucky enough to find bunk beds with a shelf next to the top bunk but I wanted to design something for those that don't have shelves hence the Bunk Bed Tidy! It has three large
pockets and is designed to hang over the side of a top bunk or high sleeper bed to keep those
essential books, soft toys and drinks bottles handy and close to the person
sleeping there.

You will need:

50 cm x 112cm Plain medium to heavyweight Calico
fabric

56cm x 50cm (1FQ) cotton fabric for the pockets.
I used Field Day - Butterfly Kaleidoscope (Blue) by Josephine Kimberling for Blend available from my online shop here

3.5 metres Bias Binding (2cm wide)

1 metre Velcro

Cutting:

Calico Fabric

Cut one rectangle of fabric measuring 86cm x 44cm.

Pocket Fabric

Cut 3 rectangle pockets 26cm x 21cm

Velcro

Cut 1 x 84cm stripBias binding

Cut 3 x 26cm pieces for the pockets

Cut 1 x 262cm piece for the Tidy

Cut out the Calico fabric for the main base of the bunk
bed tidy. Pin bias binding all the way around the edge of the fabric to hide
the edges and sew all around close to the edge. Make sure that the corners are
neatly folded before sewing. Overlap the bias slightly at the start/finish

Sew one half of your Velcro strip to the back of your Calico
fabric. The first strip should be positioned just under the bias binding along
the top and the second approx.13cm below the top of the Calico so you have 2
straight lines of Velcro. It might be worth checking that these measurements
will fit the rails your particular bunk bed before you start to sew. Sew all the way
around each Velcro strip.

Take your pockets and pin bias binding along the top edge
only. Sew the bias binding close to the edge on all 3 pockets.

Turn the pockets over and fold over 1cm at the sides and
bottom of the pockets and press.

Pin the pockets to the front of the Calico fabric spacing them out
equally. Allow approx. 3 cm between
pockets and 4cm from the bottom. Sew the pockets to the Calico fabric ensuring that you
reinforce the top of the pockets by sewing forward and backwards several times
at the top of each pocket.

The top of the bunk bed tidy should fold over the top rail
of the bunk bed and attach to the second row of Velcro holding it securely in
place.

You have a Bunk Bed Tidy!

Helpful Tips

Use 1cm seam allowance for the pockets

You could use 3 different fabrics for the pockets or
applique plain pockets with a child’s initials.

You can use denim or canvas fabric instead of Calico

Why not make your own co-ordinating bias binding

The design could easily be adapted to fit a single bed
or a different design bunk bed.

This is another Tidy made for a friend.

If you make a Bunk bed Tidy please share some photos. We love to see what you make! If you love this tutorial, please feel free to PIN the image below on to pinterest.